The Hindu: Published on 16th Dec 2024:
Why in News?
The concept of ‘One Nation, One Election’ has recently garnered attention due to increasing discussions about holding simultaneous elections for both national and State Assemblies. A committee headed by former President Ram Nath Kovind has been formed to explore the feasibility of this concept and identify necessary constitutional amendments. Two key Bills related to this—The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Ninth Amendment) Bill 2024 and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill 2024—have been delayed.
Simultaneous Elections Proposal:
Objective: Hold elections for Lok Sabha and all State Assemblies at the same time.
Advantages:
Reduces election costs and logistical expenditures.
Minimizes the disruption caused by continuous elections and allows governments to focus on governance.
Helps political parties escape the “permanent campaign mode.”
Reason for Concept: Initially, simultaneous elections were practiced post-independence, but the system broke down in the late 1960s due to factors like Article 356 (President’s Rule) and falling governments.
Critics of Simultaneous Elections:
a) Logistical Challenges:
Conducting elections simultaneously in a country of over 1.4 billion people would be an enormous task.
Even State elections often require multiple phases due to manpower and security limitations.
b) Parliamentary Democracy Incompatibility:
A fundamental feature of parliamentary democracy is that a government must maintain the confidence of the House.
If a government falls before its term ends, holding fresh elections breaks the simultaneous election cycle.
c) Proposed Solutions and Issues:
President’s Rule: Imposing central rule until the next scheduled election undermines federalism and democracy.
Shortened Terms: Conducting elections for shorter terms until the next cycle undermines the justification of cost-saving and governance focus.
d) Horse-trading and Defections:
Simultaneous elections may encourage horse-trading to prevent governments from falling, as parties may avoid mid-term elections.
Tenth Schedule, meant to curb defections, is already ineffective in dealing with this issue.
e) Federalism and Democracy Risks:
Federalism:
Indian democracy is both central and State-specific.
Simultaneous elections risk blending State-level issues into national campaigns, overshadowing regional aspirations.
Democracy:
Elections are the only mode of public participation in India’s political system.
Frequent elections allow for regular public debates and participation, which simultaneous elections will shrink.
Challenges of Simultaneous Elections":
Logistical Complexity: Managing large-scale elections across the country simultaneously requires enormous manpower, infrastructure, and security.
Falling Governments: Governments losing confidence in the House disrupt the election cycle.
Federalism Concerns: Blurring of State and national issues weakens the federal structure.
Risk of Power Centralization: Simultaneous elections could favor dominant national parties, undermining political pluralism at the State level.
Defections: Increased possibility of horse-trading to ensure political stability.
Conclusion:
While proponents argue that simultaneous elections reduce costs and enhance governance, the associated risks outweigh these benefits. Logistical challenges, federalism concerns, and democratic principles pose significant hurdles to implementing this concept. Simultaneous elections may lead to centralization of power, diminish regional representation, and curtail public participation in governance. Hence, the idea, though ambitious, remains impractical and incompatible with India's diverse and democratic framework.
